The Green Party is introducing a members’ bill today that will reduce environmental degradation as a result of dairy intensification by requiring all cows to wear nappies. “There are too many cows making too much waste for our environment to handle. Cow nappies are a simple way to keep that waste off the land and out of our waterways,” said Green Party co-leader James Shaw. “Cow number 1s and 2s are responsible for degradation of our waterways through run-off and...

The National Government has admitted it has no idea of the amount of tax it is missing out on from multinational companies that are avoiding paying their fair share of tax, the Green Party said today. Revenue Minister Michael Woodhouse was unable to answer questions in the House today from James Shaw on the amount of lost tax revenue from multinational companies. Herald investigative reporter Matt Nippert estimated the amount of missing tax could be close to $500 million per...

A startling new international report by the UN’s World Meteorological Organisation (WMO) on the state of the climate has found the number of named storms in the South Pacific has almost doubled above the annual average, which should prompt the National Government to dramatically revise its target for reducing climate damaging pollution, the Green Party said today. Commenting on the release of the Statement on the Status of the Global Climate in 2015, the WMO Director described temperatures in January...

The Government can close some of the loopholes multinational companies are using to avoid paying their fair share of tax by adopting similar measures to Australia, the Green Party said today. Australia passed new legislation in December 2015 to target multinational companies that are avoiding paying regular company tax rates. Multinationals now face 100 percent tax penalties if caught shifting profits, along with new transparency and reporting requirements to give the Australian Tax Office (ATO) a better picture of how...

Data obtained by the Green Party shows that the National Government’s funding announcement at the Paris climate change conference is a cut to assistance to help other countries deal with climate change.

The IRD warned the Government in 2013 of massive, systematic tax avoidance by multinational companies but National is still to act on it, the Green Party said today. The New Zealand Herald today released analysis that showed multinational companies operating in New Zealand could have avoided paying up to $500 million in tax last year. The IRD warned both the Ministers of Finance and Revenue in 2013 that multinationals were avoiding tax by profit shifting and that work to protect...

The Prime Minister’s admission that he “doesn’t have a clue” how many farmers will fail as a result of the dairy downturn shows that the Government is in denial about the scale of the threat facing our wider economy, the Green Party said today. Green Party Co-leader James Shaw asked the Prime Minister several straight questions on the numbers of farmers, small businesses, and rural retailers likely to be impacted by the downturn of the dairy industry and the risks faced...

The Green Party is supporting calls for a moratorium on big, publicly subsidised irrigation schemes that are bad for the environment and bad for the economy, the Green Party said today. The Tourism Export Council and the Environmental Defence Society have called for a five-year ban on new irrigation in the wake of the collapse of dairy prices internationally. The groups have also said that the growth in intensive farming is a disaster for our rivers and streams. “This is...

The decision overnight by Fonterra to further reduce its forecast milk price must jolt the National Government to admit its economic direction is not working and commit instead to a major investment in research and development (R&D), the Green Party said today. Fonterra has decided to cut its forecast Farmgate Milk Price for the 2015/16 season from $4.15 per kilogram of milk solids to just $3.90, following lower-than-expected demand from China and Russia, and higher than forecast dairy production in the...

The Green Party is encouraging New Zealanders to vote for the flag that they want to represent New Zealand in the upcoming flag referendum.